Another way to do a pole mounted aerial
I was at a Lakewood High School football game the other night, and it suddenly dawned on me that they have a great system for doing aerial photography. They mount a camcorder on a stand that is then cranked up to the desired height (typical max height seems to be around 35′ or so). They put one in the end zone in order to get a high level view of how plays develop, but in a perspective that would be more useful for a player than the traditional sideline view. They also do a sideline view from the pressbox. None of this matters though, what matters is the pole.
I did a quick Google search for “end zone camera” and came back with a few good results. They all seem to be priced around $5000 or $6000 dollars. One company offers 5 year financing plans, as well as month to month rentals ($350/ month). If you can find a company that can tailor their product for still photography, then you might have a winner. Way more costly than a painters pole, but if you have the budget and really want to look ultra-professional (or use your DSLR tethered into Lightroom maybe), one of these might be for you. If you find something similar at a lower price point, let me know.
